Pigs In Blankets – Risk Management

Christmas is a time for many things, family, tradition, joy, remembrance, food and sharing are just a few, but one thing no-one wants to share is food poisoning.

Yes, I know, the health and safety people are being Christmas grumps again, but with the Food Standards Agency estimating that there are one million cases of food poisoning in the UK each year, whether food is your business or you are cooking at home it is important to maintain good food hygiene standards.

Exactly what precautions you should take will depend on the circumstances but there are some general rules.

Firstly it is important to keep things clean, effective cleaning removes bacteria on hands, equipment and surfaces, helping to stop harmful bacteria from spreading onto food. This includes cleaning hands before handling food, disinfecting surfaces and regularly changing and washing towels, cloths and sponges etc.

It is also important to follow food storage instructions for example keeping chilled food out of the fridge for as short a time as possible, paying attention to “use by” and “best before dates” and understanding the difference between these.

You should make sure that food is cooked to the right temperature and for the right amount of time to kill any harmful bacteria.

Also you should ensure that food is prepared, handled and stored correctly to avoid cross contamination

You can find Christmas food safety advice on the food standard agency’s website at: https://www.food.gov.uk/safety-hygiene/christmas-food-hygiene

If food is part of your business our food safety specialists can help you to manage food hygiene issues.  Please speak to your normal PIB Risk management contact or get in touch using [email protected] if you have any questions

PS unfortunately that is not what the PIB in PIB Risk Management stands for.